Tuesday, January 13, 2015

This story about a young man who comes out of a coma 12 years later brings to mind the Terri Schiavo story of 10 ears ago. She was dehydrated to death. Her autopsy report showed no illness, a strong heart and lungs, and she even had loving parents who were willing to take her home and care for her. But her husband didn't want her, had started a 2nd family, and had already spent all the money he'd won for her care in a law suit. Dehydration is a terribly painful way to die, unlike starvation, and she could still feel pain.

“Yes, I was there, not from the very beginning, but about two years into my vegetative state, I began to wake up. I was aware of everything, just like any normal person,” Pistorious, now 39, recalled to NPR. “Everyone was so used to me not being there that they didn’t notice when I began to be present again. The stark reality hit me that I was going to spend the rest of my life like that — totally alone.”